Since my December 2, 2005 Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma diagnosis, I've been on a slow-motion journey of survivorship. Chemo wiped out my aggressive disease in May, 2006, but an indolent variety is still lurking. I had my thyroid removed due to papillary thyroid cancer in 2011, and was diagnosed with recurrent thyroid cancer in 2017. Join me for a survivor's reflections on life, death, faith, politics, the Bible and everything else. DISCLAIMER: I’m not a doctor, so don't look here for medical advice.

Saturday, January 26, 2008

January 26, 2008 - Gene Wilder on Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma

I came across this 8-minute video clip the other day, of film star Gene Wilder being interviewed on a British talk show (scroll down to view it). About mid-way through the clip (after recalling the death of his first wife, Gilda Radner, to ovarian cancer and his subsequent remarriage), Gene tells the story of his non-Hodgkin lymphoma treatment, which has left him in remission after more than seven years.

Although I have no way of knowing if Gene’s got the same sub-type of NHL as I do, his experience sounds, in many ways, similar to mine. He, too, had chemotherapy (9 rounds, rather than 6), plus Rituxan – although, after being told his cancer would come back eventually, he opted for an autologous stem-cell transplant. It’s touching how he tells of the hospital staff singing “Happy Birthday to You” on the day he received his new stem cells, marking the birth of a new immune system.

What I find most interesting is the name of his doctor, Dr. Carol Portlock of Memorial Sloan-Kettering – who, as it so happens, is my (second-opinion) doctor as well. It’s nice to know I’m going to one of the best.

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About Me

I am Pastor of the Point Pleasant Presbyterian Church, a 450-member congregation in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey. I also serve as Stated Clerk of the Presbytery of Monmouth - a regional governing body composed of 45 Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) congregations in central New Jersey. From time to time I teach Presbyterian Polity at Princeton Theological Seminary and Presbyterian Studies at New Brunswick Theological Seminary. I am married to the Rev. Claire Pula, Director of the Bereavement Program, Meridian Hospice. We have two children: Benjamin, a singer-songwriter, and Ania, an artist. I write two blogs: "A Pastor's Cancer Diary," in which I reflect on my ongoing experience as a cancer survivor (Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma, also Thyroid) and "Monmouth Presbytery Clerks' Corner," a place for Clerks of Session and other interested folks with an interest in Presbyterian polity (church government) to gather online.